


Blue Sky Holiday

by Brumeier



Series: The Nanny Named John [6]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Alternate Universe - Nanny, Apologies, Arguing, Attraction, Family Drama, First Kiss, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 10:53:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25848364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: John comes back to the McKay house after a day off to find chaos and a lot of hurt feelings. Being a nanny is more complicated than he thought.
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Series: The Nanny Named John [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1644118
Comments: 22
Kudos: 92





	Blue Sky Holiday

_Sometimes the system goes on the blink_   
_And the whole thing, it turns out wrong_

John spent his day off indulging in the outdoors. He went surfing, he went hiking, and he had cold beers with lunch and dinner. It was a nice break from pillow forts and Legos and princesses, but he couldn’t help wondering if Eleanor and Jaxon had ever gone surfing. Or what they would’ve thought about the cool salamander he came across.

Was that how parents felt when they were away from their kids?

That was the kind of thinking John couldn’t afford. He wasn’t a dad, he was a nanny. When Rodney got a better handle on things, he wouldn’t need John anymore. It was a job. That was all. Which didn’t stop John from picking up puka shell bracelets for the kids.

John returned to the McKay house at the end of the day to find chaos.

There were toys scattered everywhere, the kitchen was completely trashed, and Rodney and Eleanor were screaming at each other from opposite ends of the staircase.

“You and your brother need to get down here _right now_ and clean this mess up, or I swear I’m going to cancel Christmas this year!”

“You’re the meanest meaner and I hate you!”

Eleanor ran back to her room and slammed the door. Rodney brushed past John on the way to his office.

“They’re all yours,” he snapped. He slammed his office door behind him.

John stood there for a long moment, eyes closed as he recalled how nice it had been out on the water earlier in the day, and then he got to work.

He tidied up the kitchen first – filled the dishwasher, wiped down the counters and the stove, took out the garbage. He figured that would give everyone some time to calm down before he jumped in to figure out what happened.

Kids first.

John knocked on the bedroom door. “Hey, guys. It’s me. Can I come in?”

A pathetic-sounding voice responded to the affirmative.

The bedroom was in a state of disarray that matched the downstairs, and John had to push toys aside with his feet to make a path to the bed. Eleanor and Jaxon were sitting together on Jaxon’s bed, which had been piled high with all their plushies, both their little faces streaked with tears.

“Everyone okay?” John asked. He swept some of the stuffed animals to the floor so he had a spot to sit.

“Daddy yelled at us,” Jaxon said, sniffling.

“I heard. That have anything to do with all the toys?”

Eleanor shrugged, but she looked a little guilty.

“We were playing,” Jaxon said. He stuck his chin out defiantly, a move he’d gotten from his father. 

“Are you supposed to leave your stuff lying around when you’re done playing?”

“No,” Eleanor said. “But Daddy isn’t s’posed to yell.”

She wasn’t wrong. Rodney could get snappish, especially when he was tired or his blood sugar was low, but he never yelled at the kids. He’d gone so far as to make sure John knew, once he’d been hired, that _no-one_ was ever allowed to yell at Eleanor or Jaxon.

“Is there another reason your dad might be upset today?” John asked. Both kids just stared at him. “Okay. We’ll, let’s get those toys cleaned up, okay?”

“Do we have to?” Jaxon asked. 

“If you leave it out on the floor, I’m gonna assume you don’t want it anymore and it’ll all be gone.” 

John was fully prepared to follow up on that threat. It wasn’t like the kids were hurting for toys. He filed away the idea of having them donate some of their things for another day, when emotions weren’t running so high.

The kids dragged their feet, but they followed John downstairs. John turned it into a game, and soon the kids were launching their toys into the appropriate baskets – Rodney was crazy organized about that sort of thing – like they were shooting baskets. John gave them ridiculous, arbitrary scores, and it wasn’t long before Eleanor and Jaxon were all smiles and laughs again.

Once they got the downstairs cleaned up, he sent them to get ready for bed while he went to talk to Rodney.

“McKay?”

John gave a perfunctory knock and pushed the door open. Rodney was sitting at his desk, staring at his laptop. The wallpaper was a picture of Eleanor and Jaxon in a swimming pool, splashing each other and laughing.

“I sounded like my father,” Rodney said in a monotone voice. “And I couldn’t stop.”

“You had a bad day. It happens.”

John wasn’t sure what else to say. Clearly Rodney had some issues with his own father, and family dysfunction was like a minefield. No-one knew that better than John. But he also didn’t want to see Rodney beat himself up over what had happened. He was a good guy, and a good dad.

“The kids are getting ready for bed,” John said. “Why don’t you go talk to them, and tuck them in?”

Rodney shook his head. “They hate me.”

“They don’t hate you. Sounds like you three just got stuck in a feedback loop today. Talk to them. Show them you aren’t mad.”

Rodney finally looked up, and John felt a wave of unexpected affection when he saw the uncertainty and remorse on Rodney’s face.

“You think it’ll be that easy?”

“They love you,” John reiterated. “I don’t know how things were with your dad, but I know it would’ve meant a lot to me if mine had ever once apologized to me. It’s not about being perfect. You have to keep it real.”

He wasn’t a psychologist. Hell, he didn’t even like dealing with his own issues. But John knew it was important for Rodney to be seen as a fallible human being to his own kids. Not some untouchable hero it was impossible to live up to, but a guy who sometimes made mistakes, and who owned up to those mistakes. It would make him approachable.

“Okay.” Rodney got up and walked to the door, still seeming a little reluctant. He gave John a crooked grin. “Thanks.”

“That’s why you pay me the big bucks,” John quipped.

While Rodney headed upstairs to face the music, John went to his back bedroom to take a shower. Get the rest of the salt out of his hair from the beach. He took his time, letting the hot water beat down on him and relax his muscles.

He must’ve been crazy, taking a job as a nanny. It wasn’t just making lunches and keeping the kids entertained. He also had to navigate family dynamics, and things he had no way of knowing, like Rodney’s childhood baggage. He thought of his own non-existent relationship with his father, and his barely-there relationship with his younger brother. He was the last person to be giving anyone advice.

John finished up, wrapped a towel around his hips, and stepped back into his bedroom. Rodney was sitting on his bed.

“Oh. Uh.” Rodney flushed and averted his gaze, but not before he gave John a very clear once-over that had John’s blood rushing in his ears. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have barged in.”

It was awkward, and John wasn’t sure what to do with himself. He couldn’t get dressed in front of Rodney. He opted to stay in the bathroom doorway, leaning against the doorframe and hoping the towel stayed in place.

“Everything okay?”

“I just wanted to say thanks,” Rodney said. “You were right. About the kids.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“You know, the day started out pretty good. But then I got a call from work, and a stupid mistake was made that didn’t get caught till now, and it could’ve been really dangerous for a lot of people. It’s setting the work back by weeks, if not months, and I was really mad and frustrated and I –”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me,” John interrupted. “Shit happens. You owned it. That’s what matters.”

“How do you stay so calm all the time?”

“Me?” John shrugged. “Clear blue skies.”

Rodney frowned. “What the hell does that mean?”

“You know I used to be a pilot, right? When I was up there, above the clouds, all I could see was blue. And it’s like…You can leave everything else behind. No baggage, no stress. Just clear blue skies.”

It was the closest John had ever come to meditating, and he missed it fiercely sometimes.

“Blue skies,” Rodney mulled.

If anyone needed a blue sky holiday, it was Rodney.

“I should go.” Rodney shot another look over at John and looked away again. John swore he licked his lips.

John’s skin flushed hot. He trailed after Rodney and almost bumped into him when Rodney stopped with his hand on the doorknob. The air between them felt electrically charged.

_Bad idea_ , John thought. Rodney was his employer. It would be awkward and weird and –

Rodney leaned in and kissed John, and the moment seemed to simultaneously last forever and end much too quickly.

For a handful of seconds, they stared at each other, Rodney’s face an alarming shade of red, and then he opened the door.

“I won’t apologize for that,” Rodney said, and left.

John closed the door and leaned his forehead against it, fighting the urge to chase Rodney down.

Clear blue skies.

**Author's Note:**

> AN: Title and opening lyrics from the song [Bad Day by Daniel Powter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gH476CxJxfg).


End file.
